The Terms and Conditions of Being an Us
by I-laugh-I-love-I-live
Summary: It's been two years since Rose and her part-human Doctor were stranded on a beach by the Time Lord Rose fell in love with. They've had their ups and downs and Rose has learned to fall in love with him all over again, despite knowing that she will always love the fully Time Lord just a bit more than her human Doctor. Can she accept him and move on? Rated for possible sex scene (?)


"Blimey, this place is hard to find," the Doctor said as he swerved the car. Rose had her feet propped up on the dashboard, a blindfold around her eyes to keep her from seeing anything. It was a surprise. Rose wasn't too eager to let him drive. He was using a psychic paper to pose as a license in case he got pulled over by the cops. He had failed his first driving test.

It had been almost two years since the Doctor…the proper Doctor…had left her with the human-Time Lord-meta-crisis Doctor in the parallel universe. It had been hard to fall in love with him. He had Donna's mannerisms and sense of humor, had the same memories as the Doctor, looked exactly like him, and was essentially the same…but it was hard to fall in love with him. He tried too hard to please Rose. She was still adjusting to life with the Doctor so abruptly after he left her and the meta-crisis in this universe. Even with the Tardis slowly growing, it was going to take a while for them to have the kind of adventures they used to. But, as the Doctor now remarked, he was happy to have any adventure in this universe as long as he had Rose with him.

It was like they all said, it was hard to fall in love with someone. It was slow, then all at once. Rose was still in the slow part. She'd grown used to the other Doctor's gestures and mannerisms, and while this Doctor was almost the same, he was much like the Doctor Rose had first met, still full of blood, and guilt, fresh off from the Time War.

Rose was happy that she was with him. He openly told her he loved her every day, kissed her and snuggled with her in bed. He was getting used to being human, so sometimes he didn't get that she didn't want to be awake at three in the morning, but it was funny to watch him jump around like he'd had too much caffeine. She guessed that he didn't get sleeping patterns, after 900 years of time travel on the Tardis.

When she asked the Doctor for his name, his face had darkened. "It doesn't matter," he'd said, the cheerfulness Rose so associated with that incarnation gone, like it hadn't even existed. "The name I chose—the Doctor—is what matters. I made a promise to never be cruel or cowardly, and to never give up and never give in." he'd given her a tender look. Rose had understood, of course, but it was hard that she was never going to know his name.

"Where are we going?" she asked now, rolling open the window to listen to the bustle of traffic, to tell if she recognized where they were. She heard a snort coming from her right. She didn't smack the Doctor, though. He was driving.

"Don't try and open the window, I've used the sonic screwdriver so you can't hear a thing," she heard him say sheepishly. Rose's jaw dropped.

"And do you know how to undo that?" she asked, incredulous.

"Of course," he said blankly. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Nothing," she said casually. As far as she was aware, his fully Time-Lord counterpart had never been able to fix the chameleon circuit on the Tardis. She'd only gotten this car a month ago, having found a shop that sold vintage cars inexpensively. She didn't want the car to suddenly start emitting hers and the Doctor's private conversations because he'd fiddled with the sonic screwdriver a little.

As if sensing her thoughts, the Doctor exclaimed, "OI! I'll have you know that I got my license before you were even born! Before your planet was born!" Rose laughed at his shouting that so reminded her of the fierce redhead he'd been born from.

They drove on for a few minutes, cracking jokes together. The Doctor'd been talking on end for two months about this great restaurant he'd heard about from his friends (who were on the news channel, no less) that he just had to take Rose to.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Rose said, hoping to eject some irritableness in her voice. She was getting antsy about him driving for so long. Usually he couldn't last more than twenty minutes before asking her to drive, and they'd been driving for a few hours. Rose was getting restless.

"Of course I do," the Doctor said blankly. "Why wouldn't I?" Rose could almost see the blank look on his face.

"Well, you've never driven for more than twenty minutes," she said. "Usually, you ask me to drive after that,"

"Who says I don't know where we are?" he said in a husky voice that almost made Rose lose her composure. "I know where we are, Rose,"

"Where have we been that's four hours away from London?"

"Oh…you'll see," he said with an edge of happiness that he couldn't keep out of his voice. Rose didn't miss it. If it was something he was excited about, then it must have been boring and science-y, although he was likely to react like a two-year old. By screaming. And shouting. And jumping up and down.

Eventually, Rose fell asleep. They had been driving for almost four hours. Sitting in a car while your…boyfriend is driving is no fun, especially when you can't see a thing.

Rose was shaken awake by the Doctor. He was shaking her arm gently. "We're here, love," he said. Rose groaned and lifted her arm to take off the blindfold but a strong arm prevented her from taking it off. "Not yet," he scolded. "We're not inside yet,"

"Oh, we're going to be inside?" she inquired. "Thank God. It's freezing for March. Unusually cold. Shouldn't it be spring soon?"

The Doctor didn't answer. He opened her door and took her hand. Rose climbed out of the car and hear him shut the door. She froze and felt soft lips touch her own very gently. "We're almost there," he promised, squeezing her hand. He guided her inside wherever they were.

The smell inside was familiar…in a good way…like something that she always associated with the Doctor, and good things. It almost reminded her of…

"Hello, Freya," the Doctor said happily. "How are you doing?"

"I'm well, Doctor," a rough but kind voice said. Rose could picture the woman in her head: graying hair, stooped and short, but with kind eyes, and smile wrinkles lining her face. "How are you today?"

"I'm very well, thank you for asking. Rose, let me introduce you to a friend of mine. Meet Freya." He pulled the blindfold off her face. He had a very excited look on his face. He bent down to kiss her, flicking his tongue onto her bottom lip as he did so. "She's my friend."

"Where are we?" Rose said, peering around the place. It seemed vaguely familiar. Boring, blue and white checkered walls, linoleum floors and the place was quiet, no music…like there was usually a bustle of activity, and it would be overwhelming if there was music. Freya, who looked exactly like Rose had imagined her, like somebody's grandmother, came over to her and gave her a hug. "Some sort of restaurant?"

"Hello, my child," she said. Rose could almost feel her heartbeat, Freya was holding onto her so tightly. And she could swear it was almost a double heartbeat, like ba-da-da-dum ba-da-da-dum ba-da-da-dum…Freya winked at her. The Doctor smiled widely at her.

"You've brought me to a chip place a few hours away?" Rose said, and she couldn't help but smile. Leave it to the Doctor to think up of some ridiculous date to have together. The Doctor's smile got even wider, if that was possible.

"Oh, no, this place is very special to us, Rose. A very special place." he said, squeezing her hand tightly. "Remember our first date?"

Rose thought…the first time that the Doctor had taken her in a trip through time…it was to the end of the world. When they went back to 2005…such a long time ago…they had…

"Chips," Rose said, hugging the Doctor. "You brought me to a chip place…where?"

"Our first date," he said, squeezing her hand again. Rose rubbed her thumb absently across the Doctor's thumb while she thought. Our first date?

"Oh…our first date…you mean you and I…the human one of you." she smiled brilliantly at him. "I remember I was so sad…I remember you said we'd have to wait 16 years for the Tardis to grow. And I was angry at the proper Doctor for leaving me stranded here." Rose's Doctor's eyes drifted away fro Rose's gaze like he was embarrassed or sad.

Although Rose was completely in love with her human Doctor, and she had healed him, just like the proper Doctor said, she still had a longing for the proper Doctor. She would love him and miss him always. And still, after all these years in the parallel universe…she still had one minuscule glimmer of hope that he'd come back for her and take her across the universe in the universe she'd been born in.

"But you grew on me," Rose said to cover up for the both of them. Her Doctor knew that he'd never live up to the real Doctor. Even after spending two continuous years with her…talking, fighting…hashing out their feelings…even after all of it…he knew he'd never live up to the real Doctor. "And I love you, you know that? Forever." the Doctor smiled at that.

"Sit down," Freya said, breaking the awkward moment between Rose and the Doctor. They sat down opposite each other. Rose tried to forget the moment between them. She could tell the tension was gone between them. The Doctor took her hand when they sat and grinned at her.

"So we're in Norway?" Rose inquired, peering out the window. "I remember when Mum was calling Dad you found this tiny chippy so it would be our first date all over again. I don't know if Freya was here, though…were you?"

"Oh, no. I travelled here from a long way away," Freya said, winking at her. Rose wondered if Freya was a Time Lady…she knew the Doctor loved her, but to call someone from Gallifrey from the past…it should've been impossible. "Oh, no, I'm real." Freya said. She disappeared into the kitchen.

"Why are we in a chippy in Norway?" Rose said, staring out the window. She could almost see Bad Wolf Bay from where she and the Doctor were sitting.

"I'm just excited to have found it, that's all," the Doctor replied. He did look very excited.

"The place is closed," Rose said, taking a menu and peering at the times. The Tardis's translation circuits were still working. They had worked when she was in the parallel universe after Canary Wharf. It was amazing the telepathic circuits still worked after all these years.

"How come it's open for us?" Rose pressed. The Doctor cleared his throat, a sure sign that he was hiding something.

"Two things. One, I have something to tell you, two, I have another thing to tell you when we get our food."

Rose was excited now. He usually only told her good news when he made her wait. "Okay, tell me what's happening that you can tell me right now."

The Doctor took a deep breath.

"The Tardis has started its building process." Rose's draw dropped. The Doctor had spent a year and a half concentrating on the plans to grow their own Tardis. He told her that he'd scratched the surface of the technology and figured out how to make it so that the Tardis could do the complicated parts on her own.

"That's fantastic!" she said. She threw her arms around him and kissed him lightly. "How long's it going to take?" she said when she sat back down.

"Well, apparently Donna didn't give away all the knowledge of the Tardis completely. The Time Lords could, like Donna said, reduce the time to a sixteen year or so period of growth. But, in rare situations, put the growing process on automatic for a Tardis, and reduce the time even more." the Doctor said, a gleam in his eye. "It's cutting the process in about half. Just about seven and a half years till it's done. I guess that we needed both parts of the meta-crisis to come up with a plan to reduce the time needed to grow a Tardis. Across the stars we go." he grinned excitedly.

Freya came out of the kitchen and placed the chips in front of Rose and the Doctor. Rose ate a chip and smiled. "So here we are, having dinner. In a restaurant. On Earth. No aliens. No adventure. This must seem pretty boring to you."

The Doctor looked surprised and a little incredulous. "Boring? Why would you think that? This whole thing, being human, having only one life, this is by far the biggest adventure I ever had." he had a tender look in his eyes as he spoke. "There's no place in this whole wide universe I'd rather be right now. And do you know why?"

Rose looked up at him, having been staring at her chips.

"Why?"

"Because I'm with you, Rose Tyler." he said. He looked to the kitchen. Freya was standing with her arms crossed, the biggest of smiles adorning her face. The Doctor took a deep breath. "And there's no other person I'd rather be with." he crossed the table looked Rose in the eye. He took her hand and they stood up.

"Rose Tyler," he said, getting down on one knee. "The first word I ever said to you: Run. We were running all across the universe. And then I lost you. I don't think I'd ever had a worst day in my life. And then I didn't get to tell you just how much you meant to me. I didn't get to tell you that you are the only human being who's healed me in a way that I couldn't possibly not fall in love with. Because Rose Tyler, you are a remarkable being." he beamed at her. "While I did have you, you were incredible…we saved everyone we could…and even if not everybody lived…we time and time again defeated evil and did the best we possibly could." he kissed her hand. "And there's no one I can think of that I'd rather spend the rest of my life with. I…don't know if I'd be here without you, Rose." Rose felt the tears openly pooling up in her eyes, threatening to spill.

The Doctor reached into his trans-dimensional pockets and pulled out a Tardis blue velvet box. He opened the box up. Inside was a ring that had tiny yellow and pink sapphires dotted around the band, and a tiny rose engraved into the top. It was beautiful. Rose almost sobbed. She was touched by his speech.

"So, my pink and yellow human," he began, "will you do the honor of accepting this pink and yellow ring to become my wife?"

Rose was overwhelmed by his proposal speech. His brown eyes glowed, a certain sparkle quality to them. Just as the word was about to pass her lips, she froze.

A sudden vision passed through Rose's mind for a moment. This wasn't the real Doctor. She'd been thinking about how hard he was trying to live up to him, even though he knew Rose would always miss the man she'd fallen in love with. And for a moment, she couldn't see her and her Doctor…the one who held her in a tender way every night…kissed her every morning…and told her he loved her in every way he possibly could…she could only see everything she'd ever lost in her life once the Doctor had whispered for her to run. Pain, tragedy, loss beyond imagination, and a life never loved.

But then a solitary tear traced its way down her cheek, snapping her out of her vision. The Doctor was looking at her as if he knew what she was thinking about. But the tear…the tear that told her she cared fiercely for the man who'd had the bravery to tell her he loved her on Bad Wolf Bay…the one who knew it needed saying…

She was sure…she'd reached her decision.

"Yes," she whispered. The Doctor gave her the purest, most happy smile he'd ever given her. He slipped the pink and yellow sapphire ring onto her left ring finger and kissed it gently. Then he lifted Rose off her feet and spun her around in his arms. A flash went off behind Rose. Freya was probably taking pictures of them.

"Oh, my Rose," the Doctor murmured in her ear, his face buried in her shoulder. The world was spinning around Rose, making her dizzy, but she could care less. This was more than anything she'd ever imagined seven years ago…seven years ago she was a girl from the Powell Estate working in Henrik's, waiting for something to happen in her life…five years ago she was trapped in a parallel universe, hoping the man she loved would come back for her…two years ago she had taken matters into her own hands to get back to him…and now she was engaged.

"How far we've come since you told me to run," Rose said once he put her down, his hands settling on her hips and hers around his neck. "I thought I was never going to see you again…" her eyes didn't meet his for a split second, but they went back up to look up into them. "But I found my way back." the Doctor glowed with pride, waves of his love radiating off of him in a way that only Rose could sense it.

"My Rose," he said proudly, touching his lips to hers lightly.

"And do you know what?" she said, tilting her head. The Doctor did the same, inquiring.

"I never regretted a minute waiting for you," she said. "I always knew I'd find my way back," she said. "Because you're fantastic," she said. "Absolutely fantastic. And do you know what else?"

"What?" he said, clearly reminiscing his ninth self regenerating.

"We're even more fantastic together," she said. He only swooped down to capture her lips once more.

* * *

**A/N: A fluffy one-shot about the human-Time Lord-meta-crisis and Rose getting engaged. Not sure if I want to continue it…if you guys like it, tell me in the reviews if you want me to continue it…I have totally great ideas for them. Anyways, happy crying time.**


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